His First Love or Me—Who Will He Choose? I Refuse Chapter 08
Fred bent down to pick up the pieces.
I looked down at him.
“Mr. Harris doesn’t like being embarrassed, right?”
“What happened? Dignity doesn’t matter
anymore?”
“Don’t act like you care now. Save that act for
Tina.”
A shadow crossed his eyes.
“I’m done with her.”
“What does that have to do with me?”
I pulled my foot back and pushed him out.
Fred stumbled and hit the doorframe.
The man who used to be so polished and proud –
his white shirt was a wrinkled mess.
“Lydia. I just wanted to see you.”
I slammed the door shut and blocked him out.
I thought he’d leave the next day.
But Fred had never been the type to swallow his
pride.
In the next morning, when I went downstairs to
buy breakfast, I saw him sitting on the stairwell.
He was holding some breakfast.
Like he’d bought one of everything from every shop on the street.
He hadn’t slept all night. Deep, heavy dark circles sat under his bloodshot eyes.
“Lydia.”
He stood up and held the breakfast out to me.
“I don’t know what you like to eat now. So I got a little of everything.”
I didn’t take it.
“Fred. Are you deaf?”
His throat bobbed. “I can hear you.”
“Then why are you still here?”
“Because I don’t know what else to do!”
I walked around him and left.
When I came back from work in the evening, he
was still there.
The breakfast sat untouched by his feet.
Sherry frowned when she saw him.
“Lydia, should we call the police?”
I said, “No. I’ll handle it.”
I walked up to Fred. “What do you actually want?”
He pulled a stack of documents from his
briefcase.
“Two houses. Three cars. All my personal account
assets.”
“Plus a share transfer agreement for my stock
earnings. All of it goes to you.”
“If that’s not enough, I’ll add more.”
I looked at him calmly. “Fred. You think feelings
can be paid for with money?”
He panicked. “That’s not what I meant…”
“I just want to compensate you first. Lydia, I know I
was wrong.”
“I shouldn’t have lied to you. Shouldn’t have made
you feel like you didn’t matter. Shouldn’t have taken you for granted.”
His voice got lower. “Please. Give me one more
chance.”
I looked at those papers.
For nine years, I’d waited for him to finally see how much he’d hurt me. He never had. And now that he
finally wanted to, I didn’t care anymore.
And he was chasing me a thousand miles with
houses, cars, and contracts.
Too late.
I said, “You don’t get a chance just because you
want one.”
The light in Fred’s eyes faded bit by bit.
He asked quietly, “Then what do you want me to
do?”
I answered, “Disappear.”
He didn’t leave right away. But his phone rang.
Tina’s name flashed.
Fred glanced at it and hung up.
A second later, she texted.
[Fred, can the money for my studio still come through?]
[I’m not pushing you. But the thing in Europe can’t. wait much longer.]
[Also, the last payment for the beach house… you
said you’d help me with it.]
Fred stared at the screen.
His face went gray. I saw it too.
I almost wanted to laugh. “Fred.”
“Look at that. The goddess you’ve been worshipping all these years isn’t so innocent
either.”
He clenched his phone. Didn’t say anything.
I turned and went upstairs.
This time, he didn’t follow.
